Ripples
by Estrelle Buscador
Summary: Skipping stones is good for thinking, and Yugi has a lot to think about. After teaching Yami a new game, Yugi begins thinking about the time when they must say goodbye. How can Yami assure him that he will never be forgotten?


Hello all! Welcome to my newest Yu-Gi-Oh! story!

When I was on vacation with my family, I learned how to skip stones. My brother and sister liked challenging each other to how far their stones would go; I just liked watching the water move after the stones were thrown and listening to the splash. It helped me think - which is never a good idea (ha) - and I became a little philosophical. The stone-throwing along with the philosophical thinking led to this fanfic. I hope you enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! or its characters. I don't even own the concept of stone-throwing. Please don't rub it in.

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The night was dark and still, the only illumination coming from the full moon that hung low over the treetops of the park. It was early enough in the evening that the stars had not yet begun to come out, but it was bright enough to see across the small pond at the center. Although the city was not far beyond the trees lining the park, none of its noises were loud enough to disturb the peaceful atmosphere. The children who would fill the air with their laughter in the sunshine had been bundled off to bed, and the only evidence of the teeming community of birds there was in the brief bits of gossip mother birds chirped to each other from their nests. The only sound that could be heard from the entire area was a gentle plop-plop-plopping from the pond.

A curious observer might have followed the sound to its source, and seen small stones skimming the surface. They could follow the path of the stones to the wooden dock jutting over the side of the water, and see a small boy sitting at the end of the dock. Anyone who watched the local news would have immediately have recognized the profile of the figure – because even in the dark from a distance, the uniquely pointed hair was a dead giveaway – and taken a greater deal of interest in the stone-skipping. What could the King of Games be doing? Had he become tired of being the champion of Duel Monsters and decided to conquer another game? Some of his stones were touching the water more than a dozen times before finally sinking. The observer might have shaken their head in wonder. Was there no game the King could not master? He was probably even now training and developing strategies for some sort of competition…

Of course, the observer would be wrong. It was indeed Yugi Mutou, the King of Games, who was skipping stones, but he was not training for any competition. Ironically for a King of Games, Yugi didn't have a competitive bone in his body. Unlike many of the people at his level of expertise, he played for the love of playing, not the love of winning. The adrenaline rush of facing a difficult opponent, the focus required to develop a really top strategy, the joy of revelation when he finally could unravel an opponent's plan of attack – all these meant much more to him than any title or trophy ever could. And, of course, he'd recently been playing to save the world and his friends. He wasn't trying to hone his skills, not even noticing how far the stones traveled. He was just thinking. Skipping stones was good for that.

Yugi picked up one of the stones he'd placed on the dock and rolled its thin smoothness in his hand. With a quick snap of his wrist, he sent the stone skidding across the pond and watched it sink. He listened to the sound of the water, closed his eyes, and smiled. There was something about the sound he loved; the smooth, liquid sound was so soothing and peaceful. Peace was not something he'd had a lot of recently, and he would savor the time alone as long as he could.

He certainly was not alone often, usually he was with his friends hanging out or saving the world, and he loved it because he valued their company more than anything. Actually, if he got technical, he was never alone because Yami was always present in the Millenium Puzzle and taking up residence in his mind. He was a social person, but even he needed some time alone to pause and contemplate his life. And a lot had been happening, especially in recent weeks, so a thinking session was long overdue. It certainly hadn't helped that during a good part of that time his soul had been imprisoned in a slab of stone, so when he'd got out he was way behind the times.

He threw another stone and watched its flight with a pensive smile. It was occasionally hard for even him to believe that he felt no bitterness about the incident, but it was true. Even when he would be completely frank with himself, he could remember no bitterness during his imprisonment, only the cold – and the sadness. Not merely for himself, but for his friends and for Yami. Although he knew that Yami had been unable to hear his thoughts or sense his emotions, there were times when Yami's frustration and grief had floated to him through the void. It had made Yugi cringe and wish that he could offer some kind of encouragement back to his friend. But even now he had trouble convincing Yami that he had forgiven him, so he doubted any reassurance Yami could receive while in the throes of his guilt would have been accepted. Actually, come to think of it, he'd better stop thinking about it – who knew when Yami might show up. He hadn't heard from the pharaoh all evening and the last think he needed was to have him show up and hear Yugi thinking about that time – he was still very sensitive about it.

_Yami really needs to forgive himself for that. I mean, the pharaoh needs to, I mean – agh! _Yugi sighed a little bit, and then chuckled to himself as he picked up another stone and tested its weight. He sent the stone spinning, and watched the tracks on the water with a bemused smile. Some friend he was – he didn't even know how to call one of his greatest friends! It just got so confusing sometimes – he was the Spirit of the Puzzle, he was Yami, he was the Pharaoh. Now that they had been told by Ishizu Ishtar that Yami had been an Egyptian pharaoh, everyone had taken to calling him that. Joey, Tristan, and Téa had picked up the new name so effortlessly, but it still was a struggle for Yugi to do likewise.

_Of course, to be fair, I had a lot more conversations with Yami before they even realized he existed. _Yugi skipped another stone and smiled. _When he introduced himself, that was the first time he'd ever given me a name to hang onto – before that he was just a mysterious force that could take over my body at will. A mysterious force I'd been trying to keep locked away._ He shuddered. It was strange – all those weeks of imprisonment in Dartz's lair rarely caused him to flinch when he remembered it, but recalling how terrified and frightened he'd been after Yami had nearly sent Kaiba to his death still sent a cold jolt through him. _I felt so helpless and scared – I didn't know __what__ he was capable of, and I didn't want anyone to suffer._ He realized that Yami was simply trying to help him save his grandfather, but he was doing it the wrong way. And Yami had finally been able to understand that.

_When he could have simply overcome my body after that, he chose to ask for me to let him. Even though I was scared, when I heard him plead with me I knew I could trust him. He was not an enemy to be feared, he was an ally – and possibly a friend. And when all that Pegasus mess was finally resolved, and we finally could face each other, I saw pride and compassion in his eyes and __knew_ _that he was a friend, maybe the closest one I'd ever know. A friend who called himself Yami._

Yugi threw another stone, closed his eyes, and listened to it splash. _That's how I first really knew him. I guess even though he's the pharaoh, to me he'll always be Yami._

He felt a brief stirring within his mind, and the puzzle around his neck suddenly grew warm. He could hear Yami's voice in his head, /Did you call me, Yugi?/

"No, Yami. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."

The puzzle grew even warmer and Yami appeared, his ghostly form sitting besides Yugi, his feet dangling over the edge of the water. "I wasn't asleep, aibou. I have not slept in over five thousand years. I was just," an enormous yawn nearly split his regal face and his eyes widened slightly in embarrassment, "resting."

Yugi raised one eyebrow. "Uh-huh."

The pharaoh did not get flustered often – which was probably why it was so funny whenever he did. He was flustered now; his normally stern, determined face was lightly tinged with red and he was rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Yugi thought about pressing the issue, but decided to let it go. _Give him a break – he's already disoriented from getting up from being aslee- I mean, 'resting.' He certainly deserves a rest._ He looked up at the pharaoh and smiled, "Well, I'm glad you've been able to rest. After everything that's been happening, everyone has been tired."

Yugi had said whatever was needed to make Yami relax; he dropped his hand from his neck and smiled in reply. Then he looked puzzled and peered around them. "Yugi, where are our friends? Are they resting?"

Yugi took another stone and watched it skip across the water. "No, they're not resting. Far from it, actually. Johnny Steps is back in town and ran into Téa right when we got back. He got all excited and challenged her to a dance-off." He chuckled. "That guy'll never learn. So Téa went off to defeat him in public – again – and Joey and Tristan went to offer their support.

Yami's eyebrows furrowed. "And they didn't invite you along?"

"Oh, they did." Another stone danced across the water. "But the dance-off isn't going to start for another hour, so I told them I'd rather take some time to be alone and think before I joint them."

"Oh." The spirit stiffened slightly. "You should have told me that you wished to be alone, aibou. I do not wish to disturb you." The puzzle began to glow as Yami prepared to reenter its depths.

"No, Yam-Pharaoh." Yugi shook his hand to stop his dark friend. He sighed internally so that Yami couldn't sense it. Ever since Yugi's soul had been taken, Yami had been overly cautious around him – like he had to walk on eggshells to keep from hurting Yugi. _You don't need to, Yami. I forgave you long ago. If only you could forgive yourself. _"I'm glad to have you around – it's good to talk with you. Please stay."

To his relief, the spirit solidified – as much as a spirit could without actually possessing someone – and gave him a genuine wide smile. Yugi grinned, and skipped another stone. They sat together for a while in a companionable silence, Yugi skipping stones across the pond and Yami watching them and listening to the melody of the water.

After a while, Yami began noticing how Yugi's wrist was moving to send the rocks so quickly and smoothly, and became intrigued. "Yugi, what is that you're doing?"

"Skipping stones."

"Is that a game?" His eyes flashed with interest. Unlike his hikari, Yami loved competition and winning, and couldn't wait to cut his teeth on a new game…

Yugi gave him a mildly perplexed look. "I guess it could be…but I just like doing it to help me think."

"Oh. Might I try, Yugi?"

"Sure! Let me pick up a good stone first." Yugi reached down and tested one of the stones on the dock, finding it smooth and thin – perfect. "Got one. Go ahead!"

The two merged together, and their silhouette became longer as Yami took control. /You want help?/ Yugi asked him through their link.

"No, I believe I understand what to do." Yami got his arm in what he thought was the correct position, gripped the stone firmly in his fingers, and threw it with all his might – straight down. The small stone made a surprisingly loud splash as it plunged into the watery depths. Yami watched the enormous ripples emanating from the splash with dismay, and he heard a muffled snort of laughter in the back of his mind. /Yugi…are you laughing at me?/

A very strange cough answered him as Yugi fought to control his mirth. /Oh no, Pharaoh, never./

"Hmm." The pharaoh picked up another stone, taking one that looked similar to the one Yugi had selected. "How does this one look, Yugi?"

There was a pause. /Looks fine to me. May I offer some advice?/

"Certainly."

/Skipping stones is more about speed than it is about force. You threw the stone so hard you didn't give it time to spin./

"Hmm. Throw it fast – right." He brought his hand back and tried again.

This time, the stone didn't even touch the water. Instead, it soared all the way across the pond and into the trees on the other side. If anyone had been able to miss the distinct thud the stone made as it struck the tree's bark, they could not have missed the cacophony the mother birds suddenly sent up to the perpetrator who had awakened their babies.

Yugi now made no effort to hide his amusement, and his roars of laughter could be heard reverberating through their link and around Yami's mind. "Yugi…" the pharaoh said warningly.

Now it was Yugi's form that appeared ghost-like alongside the figure on the dock. He wiped a tear of mirth from his eye. "Sorry, Yami. But it was really funny."

"For you, I suppose," the pharaoh replied but his mouth began twitching upward. There was something about Yugi's good spirits that was infectious, and he soon felt himself laughing along with his hikari.

As the peals of laughter faded into the growing darkness of the night, Yugi spoke up. "Have you never skipped stones before, Pharaoh?"

Yami looked thoughtful. "I don't know."

"You don't know? But you were the King of Egypt, home to the Nile River! Can you honestly tell me you never skipped stones on the longest, most famous river in the world?"

"No, I can not honestly tell you that, Yugi. I do not remember anything about my life in Egypt – I might have skipped stones then, I might not have. I do not know. My own name is still a mystery to me, so I don't think I could recall stone-throwing."

His tone was amused, but Yugi cringed in shame. "I am sorry, Yami. I wasn't thinking."

Yami smiled warmly. "There is no reason to be sorry, aibou. Besides, I feel as though we are becoming closer to unraveling the mysteries of my past – and then I can give you those answers. But…perhaps you are sorry enough not to laugh at me – or to tell the others about this?" he ended hopefully.

Yugi gave a mischievous smile. "Maybe…" He looked down at the stones by their sides. "Want a quick tutorial?"

"Please."

Yugi merged back into his body and, controlling Yami's movements, picked up a stone. "You see, you hold it between your thumb and finger," he demonstrated, "then you spin the stone in your fingers and throw it at the same time. Like this!" The stone zoomed across the water, this time disturbing no trees or birds. He returned to sitting besides Yami. "You try."

With great care, so as not to bruise his ego further, the spirit picked up a stone and spun it. It danced across the water, touching the surface several times. He wished to shout for joy, but in an effort to maintain his regal posture kept his jubilation to himself. Beside him, Yugi was clapping enthusiastically. "That was great, pharaoh!"

"Thank you." A proud smirk spread across his face as he continued to skip stones with increasing skill and confidence. His final stone touched the water ten times before finally sinking. "Impressive, wouldn't you say, aibou?"

Another stone followed it, bouncing fourteen times. Yugi leaned back from his throw, smiling. "Oh yes, pharaoh, very impressive."

Yami raised his eyebrow. "You're just showing off now, aren't you, Yugi?"

"A little bit. It's fun!" A watch on Yugi's wrist beeped and he looked at it. "Okay, not much longer before we need to leave for the showdown with Johnny Steps."

"Johnny Steps…" The spirit's forehead furrowed slightly in thought. "Wasn't that the man whom Téa challenged the day we met Ishizu Ishtar?" Yugi nodded. "Didn't he agree to leave her alone?"

Yugi sighed and shook his head. "That guy will never learn. It's okay, though – Téa can't wait to face him again so that's all right."

"Speaking of that day, Yugi, there's a little matter we never really discussed."

Yugi audibly gulped. He had an idea of where this was going. "Really? And what would that be?"

"How about the moment when you switched control with me and I had no idea of what was going on?"

"Well…I told you it was a surprise."

"I was expecting a duel!"

"But you were surprised, weren't you? If I told you what was going to happen, then it wouldn't have been – "

"I was completely off guard!"

"True…but it worked out, didn't it? You found out more about your past, which is what you wanted and what Téa and I wanted to help you with. It wasn't a battle – it was sort of a date – "

"It most certainly was not! I know dates, I ate many of them in my previous life, and that was not a date! It was a trick!" He laughed a little. "I do appreciate it, aibou, we learned a lot that day…but next time, skip the surprise and tell me what's going to happen."

"That's fair." Yugi considered pointing out to the pharaoh what a "date" meant in the current century, but decided against it – it would make the conversation a lot more complicated as Yami didn't really grasp modern slang. He threw another stone. "How do you remember eating dates, but not your name?"

"I'm not sure." Yami's voice now held a note of soberness, "I wish that the memories of my past were more clear. But somehow I sense that these questions will be answered soon."

"I've sensed that, too. What do you think will happen when you finally regain your memories?"

"I will probably be given the opportunity to enter the Spirit World."

Yugi studied the stone in his hand for a long time before he asked, trying to keep his voice steady, "And will you take it?"

Yami paused, not wanting to hurt his hikari but valuing his friendship far too much to deceive him, "Yes, I would."

"I thought you would. It would finally put your soul at rest." Yugi threw the stone. He grinned at the spirit, "After five thousand years of imprisonment, you certainly deserve it." His cheerful, jocular manner was well done; only those closest to him could pick out the glimpse of sorrow in his gaze and in his voice. Yami, of course, picked up on it instantly.

There was a sudden flash and Yugi sat on the dock besides the ghostly figure of the spirit. Yugi stared down at the stone in his fist and gripped it tightly, as though to try and force back his feelings. But even without the link, Yami could sense the pain and sorrow Yugi was experiencing and regretted wounding his hikari. He placed a hand on Yugi's shoulder, who could feel the comforting pressure despite the fact that the spirit could not really exert any pressure on a living thing. His grip loosened on the stone, and he placed his other hand on top of Yami's in a gesture of gratitude. It defied logic that a ghost-like spirit could feel the touch of a human, or that a human could touch a spirit without ghosting through, but logic was unable to explain many things about these two. Logic was over-rated.

"I'm sorry, aibou."

"No, I'm sorry, pharaoh."

"Why are you sorry, Yugi?" The spirit's eyes were confused.

Yugi threw the stone in his hand and looked over at Yami. "For being selfish. I know that you need to return to the Spirit World so that your soul can finally rest – you deserve it. But I wish you didn't have to leave us. What's even more selfish of me is that I wish you wouldn't forget me."

_Forget you? How could you think that, Yugi? I could never forget you! _But Yugi was continuing, "Because of you, I have all my friends. You helped me save my grandfather from Pegasus. You rescued my soul when I was trapped in Dartz' lair. You've taught me courage, and how to be brave. You've changed my life – I could never forget you." His voice grew lower as though he was trying to hide the next sentence from Yami's ears as he muttered, "I guess that's why it hurts so much to know that you will forget me."

Yami didn't miss the sentence and it shocked him into speech. He gently shook his hikari by the shoulder as though to break him away from his thoughts. "How could you believe that, aibou? I would never forget you!"

Yugi looked at him with a mixture of sadness and guilt that made Yami's heart pang. Only Yugi could make himself feel guilty for feeling pain. "Please don't be offended, Yami. I don't mean that you would purposefully forget me – it just makes sense that you would."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, think about it. You've existed for over five thousand years – seventeen years in Egypt and five thousand years in the puzzle. And you don't remember anything from either of those times – not your friends or your home or even your own name. If you can't remember anything from all that time, I don't think you would remember anything from the last three or so years since you've been released."

_It's been more than three years. I could tell you the time since you set me free down to the number of days – but I don't think that would convince you._ Yami thought hard as he tried to find the best way to explain to Yugi why his fears were unfounded – that Yugi had far more influence over him than he realized, and that he could never forget Yugi even if he wanted to, which he certainly didn't.

Yugi picked up the smallest, thinnest stone from beside him and held it up so the spirit could see it. "Imagine that your entire life is this pond…my part of it would be like this stone at the side. It's not like you would ignore it on purpose, it'd just be too small to draw any notice to itself."

Yami's eyes brightened. Yugi had handed him an idea. "Yugi, can you skip that stone?"

Yugi's expression became confused at the apparent change in conversation. "Sure." He obligingly skipped the stone and both of them watched it travel and slip beneath the water.

Yami pointed to where the stone had sunk. "Yugi, I forgot, what do you call those?"

Yugi squinted into the darkness. "Ripples. Why do you ask?"

"And do you notice how they travel? Will they hit the sides of the pond?"

"Normally. Why?"

"I just wanted to make sure." Yami leaned back in satisfaction. "Yes, Yugi, you are exactly like that stone." Yugi's face fell slightly so Yami hastened to finish, "The ripples that stone made touched every part of the pond. No matter what it thought of its size or importance, just by being there that stone changed the pond and its influence affected every part of it." He looked straight at Yugi. "Yugi, by setting me free you awakened both our destinies to save the world from the shadow games. You became my light, which chased away the darkness of the puzzle and the darkness within my heart. You've taught me friendship and compassion, which is where true strength lies. You've changed me forever, hikari, not just by your actions but by your presence. Like that stone, you may never realize how big of an impact you've had on me – and your importance is far larger than that stone."

Yugi's smile became genuine and he hugged the spirit, who could feel the happiness returning to his aibou's heart. Then Yugi pulled back and began rubbing his eye furiously.

"Aibou, are you crying?"

"No," although his voice was suspiciously choked, "I've just got something in my eye."

Yami felt a grin spread over his face as he raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh."

"Fine, so I was a little bit. Sorry that I'm getting all sappy. But thanks, Yami; I really am glad to hear you say that."

"No problem, Yugi. It is true."

Yugi's watch beeped, and he looked down. Eyes widening in alarm, he jumped up. "We've only got fifteen minutes before the dance-off – we need to go!" He looked down at the pharaoh. "Do you want to go back to the Puzzle for some rest, or do you want to walk over with me?"

The pharaoh got up. "I will walk with you, Yugi." They turned to go. "Yugi, do you think that I would be able to challenge Johnny Steps again?" His eyes were glowing in anticipation.

"Why? He'd probably just run off the field in fear again."

"Well, he should after he bothered Téa after he had promised not to…besides, it would be fun!"

Yugi grinned, "Yeah, it would be. It's fine with me, as long as Téa is okay with it." Talking and laughing about Johnny Steps' imminent defeat, they turned and walked down the dock, away from the moonlit pond and towards the lights of the city and their friends.

Behind them, the first of the stone's ripples was splashing onto the shore.

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A/N: And there you are. I was a bit nervous about this story because I was not basing it off the plot of one of the episodes, but I like how it came out.

Now please push that lovely little button and review! I would like to know what you think.

Thanks for reading!


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